Percy Jackson and the Ultimate Choice
by Kajigle
Summary: 5th and final PJO book. This is my first fanfic, so if it's bad, sorry, I'm new to this. This is T for violence and language, but it's not too bad. I don't own PJO, or the characters. The story's mostly action, but a little romance. Enjoy!
1. Prologue

Prologue

I was running. I don't know what I was running to, or running away from, but I just ran. But I didn't move an inch. The perfectly even, forested land around me turned to slop and the colors mixed like paint. I heard voices, of enemies and friends and family. Then, the deepest, scariest voice of all echoed above the others, sounding like an excruciatingly familiar voice, and a malicious, unnatural voice drowning the first voice out. It laughed, delighted at my futile effort to move. I opened my mouth to scream, but no sound issued from it. I wanted to run, plug my ears, do anything that could stop that voice from haunting me. But it kept on laughing its cruel, icy laugh. It was like being trapped in a nightmare, but one you don't think you can wake up from.

**_Sorry for the short prologue, but that's how I laid out my story. Please review :-)._**


	2. I Get A House Call

I don't really know if I screamed or not, but everyone was there, standing over me. My mom, with her hair all over my face, was talking tentatively to another figure, Paul. He was my mom's fiance, my English teacher at Goode High School. Lastly, my baby brother, Tyson, was staring at me concernedly, his eyes looking me over.

"Mom, Paul, Tyson," I croaked groggily. "What's up? Why are you all standing over me?"

"Percy, dear," my mom said, "you were talking, um, loudly in your sleep."

"Oh," I said, like it wasn't anything abnormal. Well, I guess pretty much nothing is abnormal for me now. You see, not much out of the ordinary can happen when you're a demi-god. Ya, turns out that all those gods from the Greek myths, like Zeus and Poseidon, who happens to be my dad, actually exist. Actually, Tyson isn't really my mom's son, he's the son of my dad, Poseidon, and some water nymph; the truth is, he's a Cyclops, a monster. The good news was that he wasn't raised to eat half-bloods like some of his relatives. Actually, if I looked at him real close, I could see one big eye instead of two. What blocked my vision was what stopped mortals from seeing the supernatural happenings of my world: the mist. It's not really mist, but acts like it, blocking a mortal's vision of what's really there. Only someone with true vision, like my Mom and classmate, Rachel Dare, could see through the mist, and there were few mortals with that ability.

I wasn't the only demi-god, or half-blood, out there; there's a whole bunch of them, and most of them go to the same summer camp I do, Camp Half-Blood. The name says it all, and it's practically the only safe place for half-bloods. Out in the big world, there are monsters, like Tyson, that would spring at any opportunity to eat a juicy, young half-blood, unlike Tyson. That's why Camp Half-Blood is there: to make sure that happens as little as possible.

Now, things aren't so simple as, a god goes, finds a mate they like, and has a child. Rather, there are rules, or different ways of half-bloods being born. My best friend, Annabeth Chase, is a daughter of Athena, and she was born literally from the divine thoughts of her mother, and was given as a gift to her father. Also, some gods aren't even allowed to have children. The Big Three gods, Zeus, Hades, and Poseidon, aren't supposed to have kids because theirs are more powerful than the rest, and they happened to start World War II. Naturally, the rule was broken, because my friend, Thalia, a Huntress of Artemis and a Daughter of Zeus, and I, were born. But the real reason the Big Three aren't allowed to have children is the Prophecy made about their kids. According to the Spirit of Delphi, the Prophet of Apollo, one of the children of the Big Three, on their sixteenth birthday, would decide the fate of Mount Olympus. This choice would be brought upon by the enemy of the Gods, the Titan Lord, Kronos. I had encountered the Lord of Time last summer, in the form of my traitorous friend, Luke. He was the Titan Lord's puppet, doing his dirty work... that is, until last summer, when Luke's body was somehow possessed by Kronos. It was Kronos's voice, in the form of Luke, that had haunted me over the summer. My sixteenth birthday was coming up pretty soon, and all of us, including Paul, who was now in on the whole scheme, agreed that I would spend it at camp. The last few weeks had been rough, because I'd tried to live the most of my life without getting too carried away, because I didn't want to have any regrets when I made my unwanted choice whether or not to save or ruin the world.

"Sweetie," my mom said, waking me up from my thoughts. "Are you alright? We were all worried that something had...happened to you."

Catching her drift, I swiftly answered her so she wouldn't keep moping.

"No, Mom, it's okay," I said. "Just had a bad dream is all." I didn't mention that that bad dream had been plaguing me these last few weeks. My mom and Tyson shot me another worried look, but Paul led them out the door, and I was glad that he understood, or at least, understood a little more than the other two. I lay there on my bed, awake and aware, staring at the ceiling. Now more than ever, I realized that this was actually happening to me; this prophecy, this undeniable fate. And, more than ever, I wanted out of it. Because it was screwing around with the other aspects of my life. I could barely sleep anymore, expecting each creak of the house to be the moving of the stiff limbs of an ancient monster. I thought that the crack in my door would definitely be filled with the shadow of the figure I wanted to see the least, the figure that haunted my dreams, tortured my mind. I'd been through a lot of pain and hardship, as you might guess based on the three beads on my Camp necklace, but this waiting and guessing was the most agonizing of them all.

I woke up the next morning to a sound I didn't expect to hear: the quiet bleat of a satyr. Confused, and a little shocked, I burst out of bed, and reached for my magical sword, Riptide. I was about to slash through the intruder when I realized that I wasn't facing an enemy. The satyr was entirely unfamiliar to me, but he still reminded me of my satyr friend, Grover Underwood. The little satyr was really freaked out, and was chewing on his hat, leaving teeth-shaped marks in the bill.

"Um, Perseus Jackson?" asked the satyr tentatively. I kinda felt bad for scaring him, so I sheathed, or capped, riptide, and got out of bed.

"Ya, that's me," I said stupidly. "Um, what's up? Who are you? And, most importantly, why in Hades are you in my room?" The words came out a bit too angrily, and the satyr shrunk back a few inches. Then, even more carefully, its stepped forward again, it's head bent a little, almost in reverence. I didn't really like it.

"Um, it's very urgent, sir," said the satyr earnestly. "I was sent by our leader, Grover Underwood, to get you to camp right away. He is under orders from Chiron, who in turn is under orders from Zeus. My name is Nathan, and I'm here to get you safely to camp."

I stared confusedly at the little satyr, wondering how in the name of the Gods he could protect me from the monsters that would definitely come after me. But, knowing Chiron, he probably had some means of transportation ready for me. Sure enough, a familiar voice entered my thoughts.

_Yo, boss, _said Blackjack, _Hop on, and get this tree-scented satyr too, because we gotta burn hoof_. Blackjack was a pegasus I rescued from Luke's ship, the _Princess Andromeda_. He kinda thought of me as his hero, and tried to act tough and watch out for me, which I was convinced nobody could do. I hopped on to Blackjack's back, and pulled Nathan up with me. Blackjack looked a lot bigger and stronger than the last time we'd talked, and he didn't seem to notice the second weight on his back. Then, right as he spread his wings for take-off, I realized that my mom, Tyson, and Paul would really think that something had happened as they'd feared.

"Hold up, Blackjack," I said. "I gotta explain to everyone else." I jumped off his back as he agreed to wait a few minutes. I burst out the door and into the kitchen of our apartment. My mom was cooking her blue pancakes, and Tyson was wolfing them down as they came off the griddle. Paul was sitting with his nose buried in the morning paper, sipping his steaming coffee.

"Um, Mom?" I said. "Um, we have a problem."

"What is it...?" my mom started, then she saw Blackjack's wing through the door, and immediately guessed what was going on. That's one of the great things about my mom.

"Go," she told me. Tyson came up next to her, a question in his eyes, but it was answered as he got a good look of the "pretty pony" and the "goat-boy" in my room. I knew that they would explain to Paul, who probably had a load of questions for them, and me, but I didn't have time to answer them if the situation was as urgent as Nathan made it out to be. I raced back into my room, hopped on Blackjack in one motion, and we were off, sailing out of my bedroom window. Hoping that the mist wouldn't show anything too absurd to the mortals that would see us, I relaxed a little, because I was heading to the one place I truly belonged.

_Boss, sure you don't have a girlfriend or something you want to say goodbye to, because we probably won't be back for a long time. _After quickly blocking the curses aimed at Blackjack that rose in my mind because of the first part of his sentence, I realized that he was right: if and when I did return, it would be a lot different for everybody who was a part of my crazy life.

**_Now is where the story get's interesting. Please review._**


	3. I Get A Hint of How Bad My Summer'll Be

Chapter 2: I Get A Hint of How Bad My Summer Will Be

Falling asleep wasn't the greatest choice to make when you're on a pegasus's back, but I was desperate to catch up on the hours that I'd missed. As usual, my dream ended up being a nightmare, but it was a little different from the usual ones I get.

I was at camp. But it wasn't the camp I knew and loved. It was Hades unleashed.

The forest was burning, the smoke rising to cloud the sky. Thalia's tree lay uprooted on the dead grass. Peleus, the guard dragon, was gone, obviously slain by the massive force of monsters galore ravaging my home. They were having the time of their lives, dancing on the bodies that heaped the ground. I saw the faces of friends I didn't want to lose. The cabins that once stood tall and proud were ruined, burned and smoldering. My dream-body was suddenly rocketed to the front of the Big House. There, all my dearest friends were fighting for their lives against a few monsters and a half-blood. Annabeth was crying, her face red, her arm covered in blood from a nasty wound. Grover was helplessly playing on his reed pipe, trying to delay the monsters. Tyson was knocking down monsters, but he was losing energy, and the look in his eyes was plagued with grief. Mr. D, Dionysus, was nowhere in sight, and even though it was a dreamed, I wanted to yell to the sky for him to come and help.

Chiron was yelling to everyone for them to run, saying he would hold off the monsters as long as possible. Then, the monsters surged forward. My friends were overtaken, lost in the sea of monsters. Then, they all stepped back, revealing the enemy half-blood standing over the body of Annabeth. He looked down at her, and even though I couldn't see his face, I knew the look in his eyes projected his disgust and loathing. Annabeth wouldn't look up at the enemy's face, the tears streaming down her face as she clutched her arm. The enemy raised his sword, which was pitch black, and stabbed it down with all his might. I didn't want to look, but I couldn't move, and as the blade hit the ground, I screamed. There was no sound resounding from my mouth, but it was replaced by the cold laugh of Kronos. The enemy half-blood turned, and I practically threw up. He had long hair, deep blue eyes burning with hate, and a round face. His armor was black like his sword, and as he sheathed it, it disappeared, replaced by something he grasped easily in his hand. At first, I couldn't recognize him, but then he opened his hand, and the pen he was holding dropped to the cold, hard ground.

"Do you like what time can tell, young hero?" mocked Kronos. He laughed again, and I felt a searing pain run through my entire body, a hundred times worse than holding up the sky. This time, when I opened my mouth to scream, the sound that echoed from it was so blood-curdling, it would probably haunt me for the rest of my life.


	4. I Screw Up Big Time

**_Sorry for the shortness of Chapter 2, I just didn't want it to cover too much. This one is a little longer, hope you enjoy._**

Chapter 3: I Screw Up Big Time

I woke up right as we landed. The landing jarred my body, and that intensified the pain I was because of my dream. It hadn't gotten better since I'd woken up, and as we touched down, I slumped off Blackjack and thudded onto the ground.

_Um, boss, you don't look so hot, _said Blackjack nervously. _I'm gonna get Chiron. _He spread his wings and flew towards the Big House, which was barely visible through the trees. I opened my eyes a crack to see Nathan, who didn't have time to get off, clinging desperately to Blackjack, practically falling off.

"Percy!" yelled Annabeth. I was glad that she had come to greet us, and that she might have forgiven me, but I couldn't express my joy while in the excruciating pain. Annabeth was bent over me, checking my pulse, as Chiron galloped up behind her and pushed her away from me. Then, I blacked out.

I awoke from my usual nightmare to find myself in my cabin. Annabeth was over me, dabbing cold water on my forehead, and I jerked up, the laugh of Kronos fresh in my mind. She yelped, dropping the towel and bowl of water.

When she regained control of herself, she was ecstatic.

"Percy, you're okay!" she yelled, and hugged me fiercely. My face was beet red when she pulled away from me, and so was hers. We stayed still for a few seconds, and then she jumped off the bed, still blushing.

"I'm going to go tell Chiron, Percy," she said. "He'll be happy you're up. Don't move." I was about to protest, but she burst out of the cabin, and I could see her sprinting toward the Big House. I sighed, and realized that I would get in big trouble for this, but I got up anyway and walked outside. The cool air smelled wonderful as it filled my lungs. I was bursting with joy to be back here, where I belonged. I realized that I hadn't said hi to Grover once this summer, and ran into the woods to surprise him. I saw all my friends along the way, like Silena Beauregard from Aphrodite Cabin, and Beckendorf from Hephaestus Cabin. I also saw Travis and Connor Stoll, the twin pranksters of Hermes Cabin. Then, as I passed by the sword fighting arena, I was tackled by Mrs. O'Leary. She was a hellhound, but a good one, trained by our ex-sword master, Quintus. Actually, he was really Daedalus, inventor of the Labyrinth, where Annabeth, Grover, Tyson, and I had our adventure last summer. Luke had used the labyrinth to get inside the camp borders, which blocked all monsters. Daedalus sacrificed himself last summer to destroy the Labyrinth and ensure that Kronos couldn't use it again. He had left Mrs. O'Leary to me, asking me to take care of her; now, she stayed at camp, and lived in the arena.

I pushed her off after she licked my face for a few seconds; it's not fun having a humongous hellhound on your chest. I ushered her back into the arena, where she lay down to rest. Then, I continued my journey into the forest. There, after searching for a few minutes, I found Grover talking to Nathan. His dryad girlfriend, Juniper, was by his side, listening intently to the conversation. _Oh yeah, _I thought. _Grover's "mission". _Last summer, while in the Labyrinth, Grover had completed his dream of finding the Forest God, Pan. Unfortunately, due to the lack of remaining wild places, Pan had to "die," and he entrusted Grover with the task of keeping the remaining wild places from coming to harm. _So that's why Nathan had called him his "leader" earlier, _I realized.

"Percy!" Grover bleated happily. "You're awake! How are you? What happened?" He was practically jumping with excitement, and that made me feel bad for not keeping in touch.

"Easy, G-Man," I answered. "I'm fine. We weren't attacked or anything like that, I just...it's kinda hard to explain, but when I talk to Chiron, you can be there to listen, okay?" Grover happily agreed, and went back talking with Nathan, a smile on his face. Then, when they were done, he and Juniper came to talk to me for a little while. We exchanged information about our adventures away from camp, and I felt a little better. Grover had been really busy, and he said he didn't have time to send a letter to me. He was working on overdrive to find all the last wild places in the world. He had a small army of satyrs helping him out, and they were all positioned at National Parks or where helping him in his search. I told Grover about my boring school year, but he still listened intently, like a good friend. After we were done, Juniper hugged me goodbye, and Grover and I high-fived. He asked me if I was going to come to dinner, but I said I had something to do first.

"I'll see you guys there," I said, and walked off to the lake. It was so calm and quiet there, with nobody to disturb me. Well, except the person I wanted to talk to.

"Hey," Annabeth said, sitting down next to me. "It's time for dinner. Come on, Seaweed Brain." The sun was setting, and it was really beautiful the way it reflected off the water. I tried not to think of this as a romantic moment, and broke the silence between us.

"Um, Annabeth?" I asked cautiously. I didn't want to upset her. "About last summer..."

"Percy, do we seriously have to talk about this," she moaned. She started to get up to leave, but I grabbed her hand and pulled her back down. That would have made me blush normally, but I didn't really care about that now. I needed to set things straight, at least a little bit.

"Look, I'm sorry," I said. "It's just, I was kinda taken off guard. I mean, I knew that you liked Luke and all, but..." My voice trailed off, hoping she'd catch my drift. Unfortunately, she caught it too well.

"Percy, back off," she said sternly. "It's none of your business."

"I think it is," I said back to her angrily. "He's our _enemy, _Annabeth. He betrayed the Gods, he betrayed me, and he betrayed you. I know you wish he could come back, but it's too late for him. He made his choice, and you have to make yours. He's _gone, _Annabeth."

I suddenly realized that I was being a jerk, and was about to apologize when Annabeth exploded at me.

"What!" she said. "You think you can tell me what to do! Who the hell do you think you are, to tell me what choices to make! You're supposed to be my friend, Percy!" I was taken aback by the harshness in her voice as she said the last part.

"I _am _your friend, Annabeth," I said weakly.

"Apparently not," she growled. She quickly got up, and ran into towards the dining pavilion. One of her tears landed on my finger, and that made me feel even worse. What kind of friend _was _I?

_Damn, _I thought. _That went totally great._ I got up, and trudged into the woods, wanting greatly for the day to end. Because as far as I was concerned, I probably lost someone close to me, and that made this the worst day of my life.

Unfortunately, my wishes don't often come true, and sure enough, after dinner, Chiron found me trying to escape to my cabin.

"Percy," Chiron said gravely. "We need to talk." I knew I couldn't get out of this one, so I followed him into the Big House, where he sat me down on a sofa.

"Percy, you never told me what happened to you," Chiron said.

"It was nothing. Just a nightmare," I answered.

"A nightmare that knocked you entirely unconscious?" asked Chiron suspiciously.

"Um, well, it was kind of about...the camp." I went into a surprisingly detailed description of my dream, and Chiron listened with a stern look on his face.

"Percy," Chiron said commandingly. "I want you to tell me every time you have a nightmare. I want to figure out what's going on with you." I promised him I would, and after swearing on the River Styx, I exited the Big House and went to my cabin. When I entered, I was greeted with a painful, crushing bear hug.

"BROTHER!" Tyson cried excitedly. "I'm here!" He released me, and after checking to make sure that nothing was broken, I smiled up at him. His one big eye was filled with joy.

"Glad you could make it, Tyson," I told him. Seeing his face made me feel a little better about the day.

"Where is Annabeth?" asked Tyson excitedly. "I want to say hi!" That wasn't the best thing to say at the time, and I marched past him and jumped onto my bed.

"She's probably in her cabin," I said angrily. I knew I shouldn't be pissed at her, but I couldn't help it. She was being stupid for not accepting that Luke was gone. Even her prophecy last year had confirmed it. But, well, I was also kinda pissed that the last line wasn't about me...

"I will go say hi, then," Tyson said. I didn't think this was the best of ideas, so I told Tyson no.

"Could you wait until tomorrow, big guy?" I asked him. "Annabeth and I are... arguing over something." A question rose in Tyson's eyes, but he was too considerate to ask it.

"It's okay," I lied, wanting him to at least not have to worry over it. "We'll get over it," I promised him. Tyson nodded reluctantly, and I guessed that he didn't fully believe me. He was too smart to know that everything was okay. I guess because he was my brother, he got a better read on me than other people did.

"Don't let it keep you up, big guy," I told him. "Get some rest." With that, I turned over on my bed, closed my eyes, and went to sleep, praying that I too could get some rest.

**_Thank you, idkwat2say and PercyJacksonRox for the _2 _reviews I got. Please, review. The more you all review, the faster I'll get up chapters. However, I might not get them up so fast because I have school. Thank you._**


	5. I Rewind the Clock

**_Thank you to the people who reviewed. Just to clarify, all the text in this chapter that is in italics is happening in the past. I wrote this chapter to sort of pick up where BOTL left off. Hope you all enjoy. :-)_**

Chapter 4: I Rewind the Clock

_Nico stared suspiciously at the blue cake on my table._

_"It's not poisoned or anything, right," he asked seriously. I laughed and assured him that it tasted great.I was about to break off a tiny piece of the cake and show him it was fine when Nico stopped me._

_"Don't," he said. "It'll taste too much like the sea if you do." Confused, I stared at him. Then I let it go, realizing that it was pointless. Nico grabbed the cake and started wolfing it down. I felt really bad, because this probably wasn't how Bianca wanted him to be: starved and weak. Thinking of Bianca made me feel a little worse, so I dropped the thought._

_"So," I said, hoping to break the silence between us. "What's up?" He looked really different. The way he was growing, he'd be taller than me within a month or two._

_"I went down to see my dad," he said calmly. I just gaped at him. _Hades. _He had hated me for a long time, ever since I'd come in to his realm a few years ago, blaming him for stealing Zeus's lightning bolt. It was a long story, one too tedious to get in to._

_"That's, um, nice," I offered. I didn't really know what there was to do down there, but Nico had a lot of questions for his dad, and I figured he'd like it with all the spirits. He seemed to have a knack with them. "Did you find what you were looking for?" I asked. I knew he'd get what I meant._

_"Ya," he said, and we didn't say anything more for a few minutes. When he had eaten as much cake and ice cream as I thought only Tyson could, he turned to me with a business-like expression on his face._

_"So," he said. "About Luke." I turned my full attention to him. If he really had a way to defeat Luke, I was game all the way._

_"I did quite a few things with my dad," he said, smiling. He rubbed the ring on his finger. "The experience was...educational." I didn't like the way he smiled so evilly, and I was a bit worried, but didn't pursue the topic. I was too busy wondering how absurd Nico's plan to kill __Kronos__ would be._

_"Do you know the sacred places of the Big Three, Percy?" Nico asked. Honestly, I had no clue, but I guessed anyway._

_"Um, __Hades's__ would the the Underworld, Zeus's the sky, and my dad's the sea, right?"_

_"You're one for three," Nico said bluntly. "You are correct in saying that __Hades's__ sacred place is the Underworld. However, Poseidon's sacred place is Atlantis and Zeus's is Olympus."_

_"Wait, wait," I said, interrupting him. "Time out. Did you say _Atlantis. _That place sunk, right." Of course, I was stupid to think that what __mortals__ thought of Atlantis was true. In my world, everything's real different from the mortal world._

_"Nope," Nico said, as I had expected. "It is, in fact, in the Sea of Monsters. You remember _that _place, don't you?" he joked. Naturally, I did, because in my second year at camp, I had gone on a quest there to find the Golden Fleece._

_"Okay, you made me feel like an idiot," I told Nico impatiently. "Now tell me what that has to do with __Kronos__."_

_"Don't you see," said Nico, shaking his head. "The Gods draw their power from their sacred places. __Kronos's__ plan is to destroy them."_

_"Oh," I said stupidly. I should have known that, but my mind didn't work as well as I'd like it to. "So, how do we stop __Kronos__?"_

_"Well, __Kronos__ is weakened quite a bit when he enters those sacred areas. That will be the time he is most vulnerable. I think that you should stay at Atlantis, waiting for Kronos to strike. At Atlantis, you'll be you're strongest, because, well, you know why. The hard part will be finding Kronos. I expect him to be in the center of his army, which will be enormous compared to the one that attacked the camp. There, he'll be protected. You'll have to muster up an army to defend Atlantis, and you'll have to fight your way through to Kronos. Trust me, your force can't be as dinky as the ragtag group of half-bloods that populate camp. It has to be a true army. The God's will hopefully all lend their powers to you, but it's up to you to save their asses. Do you understand, Percy?" Nico had fit a lot of information into a few seconds, and it took me a little while to register it all._

_"Okay, okay," I said. "So, I have to get to Atlantis, muster an army, defend Atlantis, defeat Kronos's army, and destroy Kronos. That sounds totally easy, right?" I knew I shouldn't be joking, but I couldn't help it. It was much more absurd than I thought it would be. What really got me was how he said the Gods would _hopefully _help us. Great._

_"You idiot, Percy, I'm being serious," Nico scolded me. "You have to do it all, or else we're dead and lost."_

_"Right," I said, this time serious. It was really up to me._

_"Oh, Percy," Nico added. "Um, sorry to say this, but __Kronos__ is probably gonna start his attack close to your birthday. In a year from today. The Gods know it's gonna happen, but they haven't told Chiron because they don't think it will be too serious. Just a futile effort. Even my dad thinks that way. But don't worry, once the battle starts, they'll all work real hard to protect their kingdoms. Your job, now, is to alert Chiron to the situation's seriousness first thing when you get to camp, or sooner, if that's possible."_

_"Right, I'll tell __Chiron__," I promised. "How 'bout you?"_

_"I'll be...helping behind the scenes," Nico said, making me more confused._

_"Right," I said, shaking off his comment. "I'll do whatever I can, and I'll get everyone ready for battle at Atlantis. But I can't tell everyone until I get to camp, because I want to at least have a sort of calm school year."_

_"Fine," Nico said, a little angry. "But don't forget, you hear? If you do, then first of all, I'll be there to make the rest of your existence miserable if we all die, and second, well, we'll all die._

_The colors of the room swirled and mixed. _I must be waking up, _I thought..._

I was staring up at my cabin ceiling, with Tyson's massive snores shaking the bed. _Weird, _I thought. _That dream was so different, not bad. What on Olympus could it..._

"Oh, damn!" I yelled, waking up from my dream. "I need to tell Chiron!" Tyson, having woken because of my cry, looked at me, shocked and confused. But I didn't have time to explain to him, so I jumped out of bed, pulled on some clothes in record-breaking speed, and raced towards the Big House, cursing myself all the way.

**_Ok, I was real happy with the reviews I got, and so, thank you. But that doesn't mean I won't accept more reviews, so feel obliged to. Sorry it took so long to get this chapter up, but I have school, and I'm gonna warn you that it's probably gonna take this long from now on. Sorry for the inconvenience, but it's the fastest I can go. Thanks. :-)_**


	6. I Lock and Load

Chapter 5: I Lock and Load

It was a pretty nice morning that day. I guessed that it was around seven o'clock. The sun was rising, and as I came to the front of the Big House, I saw a few dryads yawning in the woods.

I burst through the door, and cursed, realizing that I'd forgotten where Chiron slept: the stables. Then, I felt a chill enter my entire body, and all the hairs on my back stood on end. I looked over my shoulder to see the open doorway to the attic. To the Oracle of Delphi. Hesitantly, I began walking up the stairs to the hatchway that led into the dusty old room which the Oracle inhabited. Well, if a skeleton can live anywhere. I opened the trapdoor, and was greeted by a gust of the same bone-chilling air. I knew I shouldn't be doing this, shouldn't be up here without Chiron having told me so. But I had to, because people usually did what skeletal oracles told them. Or, at least, in my world they do.

There, a few feet in front of me, was the Oracle herself, floating in the middle of the room, waiting for me.

_I am the spirit of Delphi, _it spoke in my mind, which always tended to creep me out a lot. _Speaker of the prophecies of __Phobus__ Apollo, slayer of the might Python. Approach, Seeker, and ask. _I stepped forward cautiously, and as I did, green smoke began leaking from the Oracle's mouth.

_The Titan Lord betrays his foes,_

_with mighty feats, his power grows._

_The trail of death reaches long,_

_To the mighty sorceress, with powers strong._

_To crack a soul through the claiming of life,_

_But true love may heal the strife._

_The damaged soul must face Lord Time,_

_Lest let him go free for his terrible crimes._

I stared at the spirit, gaping at her. First of all, the prophecy was two lines longer than normal. And secondly, I couldn't decipher half the lines of it. I got the second line, which I guessed was related to how he would grow stronger when he destroyed the sacred places of the Big Three. I got the fifth line, at least the part about a claiming of life. The sixth line gave me a little fuzzy feeling, even though I didn't really get it. The seventh line was pretty straightforward, and the eighth line just backed up the previous line. What confused me the most was the part about betraying foes and a sorceress. I mean, how could you betray your foes? I may be dyslexic, but from what I'd heard, I thought betray means to double-cross a friend, not an enemy. And I had a bad experience with a sorceress, which had left my ego scarred, and given me an undeniable craving for celery and carrots. The strong powers part was also a bit ominous. Even though I would get in loads of trouble, I knew I had to tell Chiron right away.

I sprinted out of the attic, making sure to close the trapdoor behind me, and ran towards the stables at full speed. It had felt like I'd been in the Big House for a few hours, but it was only about five minutes. I knew that practically nobody would be up, but after I delivered my news to Chiron, the entire camp would be ready for battle by nightfall. I reached the stables and found Chiron galloping around it, stretching his legs.

"Percy," Chiron said, worry in his voice. "Another nightmare?"

"No," I said. I went into a detailed but amazingly fast version of why I was there, and also my little talk with the Oracle.

"Percy, I'm sure you understand the importance of what you had to tell me," said Chiron. "I will alert the entire camp, and all of its allies. I will get everyone ready for action as soon as possible. I know it seems that there is a bit of time, but your prophecy could mean that Kronos's plans aren't what we think they are. He could potentially strike at any time, even tonight if he so chooses." I gulped, understanding fully that this was really happening. Camp was going to war, and I was part of it. That might sound really exciting to some people, but for me, who was craving a pretty relaxing summer, it was like learning that school lasted year-round, but a hundred times worse.

"Great," I muttered. "So, we have no clue what he's planning, no clue when he's attacking, no clue what he's really after, and no clue what to do about it."

"Percy, it's going to be okay," reassured Chiron. "The gods all support us. We must believe." That reminded me of something that I'd not noticed before.

"Chiron, where's Mr. D?" I asked. I really hated Mr. D, who was really Dionysus, our camp director. He got stuck here by Zeus because he went after some forbidden wood nymph. He took all his chances to piss me off and make me look stupid. I was just curious what had happened to him. Hopefully something a little painful.

"He is staying on Olympus until Kronos is stopped," Chiron said simply. "He doesn't care as much for this camp as much as Olympus." Chiron was disappointed in the truth in what he said. I nodded my head, much happier than he. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad after all.

I headed down to the armory to tell Beckendorf to start up fast. What I wasn't expecting to see was Silena Beauregard right next to him, watching him hammer away at an incomplete sword. I was real shocked, because Silena was a daughter of Aphrodite, and was supposed to hate anything that could screw up her make-up. She and Beckendorf were chatting, and Beckendorf had a smile playing at the corners of his mouth. Beckendorf. _Smiling. _What on Olympus was going on here? Then it nailed me, and I felt really stupid, which was becoming a common thing this summer. But I was smart enough to leave them alone, thinking that Chiron would get to it eventually.

I was going to tell Tyson when I spotted Annabeth, walking towards the forest. I ran up to her, hoping to make up for the idiot I'd been when we'd last talked.

"Hey, Wise Girl," I said. "What's up?"

Annabeth gave me one glance, and then looked away. "I'm just going into the forest to talk to Grover and Juniper, so leave me alone," she snapped.

"Um, listen," I said, feeling a little uncomfortable. "I'm real sorry about how much of a jerk I was when we talked at the lake. I didn't mean to piss you off, and I know that I shouldn't be telling you how to live your life. Are we cool?"

She turned to look at me, and there were a few tears in her eyes. I felt really bad, and she didn't answer my question, so I continued.

"Uh, I had a dream," I said stupidly. "Well, a recollection, really. I remembered talking to Nico..." I explained what had happened over the time I didn't spend at camp. When I was done, Annabeth looked really worried.

"Percy," she said. "We have to get ready right away..." then she remembered that she was mad at me. "I mean, stop standing there and do something!"

"Okay," I said. "I know you're trying hard to be angry with me, but I truly am sorry. I need you on this one, Wise Girl. So, friends?" I put out my hand for her to shake, feeling a little too business-like.

Annabeth looked at my hand, then looked at me, and then totally caught me off guard by hugging me. "Sorry I was such an idiot, too, Seaweed Brain," she said through her tears. I was blushing like crazy, but at least we were friends again. She let go, tears still on her face. She wiped them off absentmindedly with her shirt, and then looked at me, a new fire in her eyes.

"Come on, Seaweed Brain," she said confidently. "We got a lot to do." She grinned, and grabbed my shirt to haul me along behind her.

"Let's lock and load," I muttered grimly. Finally, the War of the Titans truly began.

**_Sorry, the tital's kinda cheesy, lol. And the prophecy isn't that great either, but it was the best I could think of :-). Percy and Annabeth make up, so there's the answer to all the people wondering about the Percabeth thing. Hope you enjoyed the chapter. I'll probably get the next one up by the weekend, but don't cross your fingers._**


	7. I Cast Away

**_To my few but faithful fans, I have to apologize a lot. I am reeeeeeally sorry that this chapter took so long to get up, but school totally preoccupied me. Well, now it's up, and I must unfortunately add that the next chapter will probably take the same amount of time, if not a little longer. Please enjoy, and thanks._**

Chapter 6: I Cast Away

Everybody was lining up at the armory. Beckendorf, Tyson, and everyone in the Hephaestus cabin were working their asses off trying to get weapons and armor for all the campers, satyrs, and dryads. The centaurs had arrived a few days earlier, and the stables were so full that Blackjack and a few of his friends were staying in my cabin. Now, I had to sleep to the sound of Tyson and the horses snoring.

I stood at the front of one of the many lines that led into the armory. I was handing swords, shields, and armor to everyone who passed me by. I myself was equipped with my watch/shield, Riptide, and a full set of Greek battle armor that Tyson had specially made for me. Annabeth was next to me, helping me with the distribution of the war supplies, and she was talking strategy. Naturally, I didn't get half of it.

"Ok," she said. "I've finally figured out our main plan. We, being you, me, Tyson, Grover, and all 100 half-bloods will sail to Atlantis in three days to set up camp. Now, we'll need a huge ship, so all of Athena cabin is going to build a giant trireme to accommodate us all. Everyone except you and a few other people will have to pitch in rowing. You, because we need you to navigate, and the others to man the other various parts of the ship. Are you with me?" Honestly, I had lost her a few minutes ago. I was too absorbed in how we planned to beat Kronos, when his army would probably double ours. I had some serious doubts about this whole campaign.

"Annabeth," I said, "How are we even going to get to Atlantis? We don't know where it is? It could be anywhere in the Sea of Monsters. More importantly, how are we going to get into the Sea of Monsters, with Scylla and Charybdis one way, and the Smashing Rocks the other?"

"Relax, Seaweed Brain," Annabeth reassured me. "I figured it all out. We're going to ask your dad for help. He'll tell us how to get to Atlantis, and he'll clear up a path for us to get there. It's really simple, right?"

I looked at her like she was crazy. _No, _it wasn't simple. What would I tell my dad, that me and about a thousand other friends were going to vacation on his sacred island? He'd probably tell Zeus what we were up to. I shuddered at how angry he'd be at me for butting in on his situation.

"Wise Girl," I complained, "my dad will be real suspicious when he learns we're going to Atlantis. He'll probably tell the other Gods, right? Hell, he might not even believe me."

"I hope he tells the other Gods," Annabeth said cheerfully, which I wasn't expecting. "You're going to tell him exactly why we're going, and he'll tell everyone on Olympus how serious the situation really is."

I gaped at her. Had she been hit on the head today, or what, because she was way smarter than this. Her plan sounded really insane to me.

"Percy, you idiot," Annabeth said, shaking her head. "Poseidon's got to believe you. He's your _dad_. The God's have to believe him; hopefully he'll present a good enough argument to them. Have faith in him, Seaweed Brain. He loves you a lot, it's real easy to see that." I wasn't too sure about that, though. I mean, my dad was awesome, but he seemed almost pre-occupied around me sometimes. And he'd never invited me to come to his undersea 

realm, whereas Tyson practically had a third home there. I kind of felt like the relationship between my dad and I was a little strained, especially since I saw Antaeus last year.

"Relax, Seaweed Brain," Annabeth said, punching me in the arm. "Everything's gonna work out. I have this totally under control. We're gonna get through this, and we're going to send Kronos and his army to Tartarus." She went in to a series of battle formations and tactics that lasted about three hours because she had to explain the meaning of them all to me. I wasn't the one for tactics, I just went in with the big guns.

The rest of the day was spent building the ship that we would use to get into the Sea of Monsters. It was massive, and I'd never seen a ship so big before. It could probably hold all of camp, the satyrs and dryads, and the centaurs, and still have space for quite a few more. The entire thing took up as much space as all the cabins did. But it probably looked a lot smaller from the inside. Naturally, I loved it. Ships were something that I could always find time to appreciate. The satyrs and dryads were probably the best in working with the wood, and all of Hephaestus pitched in to construct the monstrosity.

By the next day, the trireme was ready, but the people who were to man it weren't. I had to educate them all about how to man their stations, and how to keep everything running in top shape. By twilight, they were all as close to able-bodied seamen as I could whip them into. I felt a spark of hope ignite inside of me. Maybe we had a shot at this. Our army was at least twenty times bigger than what had defended us during the Battle of the Labyrinth last year. Camp was packed to the brim, with tents set up throughout the entire grounds to accommodate all of our warriors. We had all the centaurs from across North America, and we actually had the pegasi ready for battle, to be used as war horses. I wasn't too keen on that, because pegasi were pretty gentle creatures, but they had actually volunteered, and Beckendorf and his crew had set about making armor for them all. We also had a couple hundred wood nymphs and satyrs, all of them armed with weapons like bows and clubs. There was Briares, who had somehow learned of our situation, and had arrived just a day ago from the undersea forges of my dad. He had also brought with him a small army of Cyclopses, under orders from Poseidon.

Poseidon had actually wanted to talk to me personally, Briares said. Even though he knew about the situation, he needed to tell me something. I wasn't too keen on what he would say to me. Something like being careful, not losing control, and sticking to the plan. Briares said he would meet me at the lake the evening before we left. It was about five o'clock, so I reluctantly headed toward the lake. Annabeth cut me off halfway there, though.

"Hey, Seaweed Brain," she called. "Going to see your dad now?"

"Ya," I answered her. "I'm a little nervous, though." Actually, I was really nervous, but I wasn't about to tell her that.

"It'll be fine," she soothed. "He just means the best for you, like my mom does for me. I can't even tell you how many lectures she's given me on being safe and not...hanging out with you. She and Aphrodite are still arguing." I understood her fully. Athena wasn't too happy about the friendship between Annabeth and I, and she let me know it well. Aphrodite, on the other hand, was ecstatic that Annabeth and I were friends, and she knew how much I liked Annabeth. Unfortunately, so did Athena, and they had never gotten over that little situation.

Annabeth woke me from my thoughts with an unexpected hug. "It's almost time," she said. "I really can't believe that we're doing this. I'm actually pretty scared."

"Don't worry," I said, holding her a little tighter. "I won't let anything happen to you."

She pulled away from me a little to look at my face. "Not me, Seaweed Brain," she said, tears in her eyes. "You, stupid."

"Don't worry about it. I've lived this long, right?" I grinned at her, but she frowned, not finding it funny. I could tell that she was really concerned, and I didn't want her to cry like she did when she thought I was killed at Mt. Saint Helens. She pulled away from me, and turned to head back to her cabin.

"I think you'd better get to the lake, Seaweed Brain," she sighed. "See you at dinner." She headed back towards camp, and it took quite a bit of willpower to not watch her go. Damn my adolescent brain.

I continued toward the lake, and reached there in a few minutes. By the time I had arrived, the sun was just setting over the horizon. It was about ten seconds later that, with the moon shining beautifully, I felt a hand touch my shoulder. I jumped away, but turned to find my father's smiling face looking down at me. He was in his usual Bermuda shorts and Hawaiian shirt, and was his towering eleven feet tall self. He wore a necklace of seashells, and his sea-green eyes looked deep into mine.

"Percy," he said happily. "It's good to see you again, son." I had seen my dad last at my birthday, when he'd given me a sand dollar and some bad news. The news was that Typhon, the great Titan trapped under Mt. Saint Helens, was close to breaking free from his prison. And that was terrible news, even for me, the king of unlucky.

"Percy," Poseidon said. "I hear that you plan on going to Atlantis to confront my father." He strained over the word father, like it didn't feel right coming out of his mouth. Not many people would like to admit that the Titan Lord was their father. I was surprised he used the word.

"Dad," I explained. "You need to listen. Kronos plans to attack Atlantis, the Underworld, and Olympus. He knows that by destroying your sacred place, he'll weaken you. You have to believe me..." I was babbling now, desperate for his acceptance.

"Son," my dad said. "I believe you fully, but I'm afraid that my brothers may not. I will support you, but don't expect help from many other Gods. That is why I need to persuade you not to help defend Atlantis." I gaped at my dad. Atlantis was my sacred place as much as his. I needed to defend it, protect it.

"Dad, I can't do that," I said sternly. "I know, it may be stupid, but we have to hope. All those other great heroes, Hercules, Theseus, Perseus, I'm positive that they didn't know the outcome. But they stuck to it because they believed. And I'm gonna make those guys, and hopefully you, proud. It's my turn dad." I ended my little speech with a meaningful look at my father. His eyes softened for a bit, and he looked proudly at me.

"Oh, and dad," I said. "Um, how do I get to Atlantis?" It was the reason I'd wanted to talk to him in the first place, and I'd practically forgotten about it.

My dad's eyes twinkled for a second. "That's easy," he said. "Where do you think the breeze comes from?" I got what he meant immediately.

"Dad, one more thing," I said, as he started to turn away. "Um, I know you probably don't approve, but I'd really like your blessing for this battle, and I'd like to fight beside you at Atlantis. Please." I didn't want to sound begging, but I couldn't keep the plea out of my voice as I said the last word.

"Well, then," Poseidon said, a grin playing at his mouth. "I guess I could use a general." My eyes lit up at the word. Me. _General. _Of the Earthshaker's army. I felt proud, and a fuzzy feeling ran through my body.

"You can count on me, dad," I said. "I mean, Lord Poseidon." I smiled up at him, and he smiled back.

"Then, I shall see you at the front, General," my dad said, emphasizing the word "General". Then, he turned into water before my eyes, and was swept away by a cool, ocean breeze.

The next day, the day of we cast off, was hurried. We had to get furnish the ship, stock it with supplies, and get everyone in it by nightfall so we could set sail. As night approached, the preparations were finished in a frantic burst of energy by everyone. After a solemn, quiet dinner, we all gathered in front of the ship. It was a masterpiece, and I knew Annabeth had worked her ass off to get it this way. The deck was smooth and clean, and below, it was tidy, but not too tidy, which was the way I liked it. Anyway, a ship wasn't supposed to be as comfortable as a five star hotel. As I stepped onto the deck, I collided with Annabeth, and she toppled onto the deck.

"Oof," she said. "That hurt, Seaweed Brain!" she complained. I smiled, and reached down my hand to help her up. Instead, she grabbed my hand and jerked me down next to her. She was right, this thing wasn't soft at all, and I thought I got a few splinters in my back.

"Why'd you do that?" I whined. She didn't answer me, and I realized she was staring up at the sky. I did too, and was dazzled. The stars were shining brighter than I ever remember, with each constellation clear as day. We just sat there for a few minutes, looking up at the stars. I wouldn't have complained if we'd stayed there all night.

"Seaweed Brain," she said. "What would you wish for, out of anything in the world?" Her question shocked me. To be honest, I truly didn't know myself. There were so many different feelings in my head. I wanted to save Olympus. I wanted to help those in need. I wanted to make the world a better place. But that was all the stuff that you'd say at a Miss America pageant. What I really wanted happened to be lying next to me. What I really wanted was tearing my heart apart painfully. "Um, I wish that I could know what Kronos is really planning," I said, desperately grasping for an answer.

She was silent for a second, and then, suddenly, she rolled on her side, and grabbed my hand. She squeezed it tight, and it really hurt. "Percy," she said. "You're a sucky liar." My face was slowly turning red, but I tried to gain control of my head again. I turned on my side too, and looked into her face. Her eyes were twinkling in the starlight, and I could have sat there looking into her face for eternity.

"Fine, I'm lying." I moved a little closer to her, and squeezed her hand. "You have to guess."

"Does it involve...another half-blood?" she asked rhetorically. Her face was so close, her eyes staring straight into mine.

"Is this half-blood in your prophecy?" Our faces were inches apart. I was on fire, my heart racing in my chest. I could taste the sweet perfume she wore, the addicting, heart-wrenching beauty of her face...

"Percy!" I heard Chiron call. Annabeth suddenly pulled away from me, her face beet red. She quickly got up and stretched out her hand mechanically. My face was redder than hers, and my heart still hadn't stopped racing. But our moment was over. I grabbed her hand sadly, and she pulled me up. I looked over the port side of the ship to see the entire army standing there, waiting, as if for me.

"Speech," was all Annabeth was capable of mumbling. Oh, well, this was truly perfect. The kid with ADHD and dyslexia has to make a speech. But, I knew I had to say something, so I said what I had learned from countless battles that I probably should have died in without friends.

"Look," I said. "I don't have any amazing, heart-warming, inspiring speech for you all. Frankly, I don't really think it would help that much. Because when we get to that island, if we get to that island, it's gonna be some kind of Hell. You'll see that obstacle, that unclimbable wall and the fear of the Titans will be struck in your heart." Everyone's eyes were wide with horror as they stared up at me, and Annabeth, who seemed to have finally recovered, was about to sock me to make me shut up. "What I have to tell you is the truth. You'll go out there, and you'll see an army. An army pretty much straight from Tartarus. Fresh, eager, _ready_. And I guarantee that you're all going to want to shake in your boots. I have one thing that I want you to remember, though. You're out there, not as a single person, but as a united _force_. As a _family. _When you're out there, staring Death in the face, I want you to look to your left and right, and remember, that you will _never _be alone in a family. Remember that everyone who loves you is supporting you, giving you whatever they can, to make you succeed, to make you victors, conquerors. Heroes. Then, look back at that army again, the army that faces you, threatens you, strikes fear in you. And then, let it all go. Your angers, your hates, your jealousies. Out there, there's nothing but you...and your fear. It's up to you...which side wins." I looked at them all, scanning the faces. I felt all fuzzy inside, not like how I'd felt a few minutes ago, but like I had finally said something that had a true meaning.

For good measure, I drew Riptide, and raised it in the air. As I did, Annabeth drew her dagger, and copied me. After a few seconds, the entire camp, all the centaurs, Briares, the cyclopses, and the nature spirits had raised their weapons had raised their weapons and were chanting in ancient Greek.

"Θάνατος ήττας! Defeat Death!" With that, they practically charged onto the boat in the eagerness. I turned my head to my side so I could look at Annabeth, but she wasn't there. I sighed heavily, and walked to the front of the ship, where I would steer and give orders. I had luckily whipped a few strong kids into seamen shape, and they were pretty good at what they were supposed to do. Also, we had divided the rowing into four different shifts, three made up of campers, satyrs, and dryads, and one made of Briares, a few Cyclops. I let my mind wander, into the ship, feeling it as if it were a part of me. With a few words that even I didn't understand, the ship was ready to set sail. We left the harbor right as the clock struck 12 midnight.

**_Just a little comment, from now on, there's gonna be a little more Percabeth, so for all those people who have asked for it, your wish has been granted. _****_:-)_**


	8. We Have A Few Surprises

**Again, I feel truly horrible that I couldn't update fast TT. Thank you again for waiting, I know, I'm a terrible person (but school was so hard...). Enough of my whining and excuses, I hope you enjoy!**

Chapter 7: We Have An Unexpected Guest

The rock of the boat on the open water eased as nothing else could. This was where I forever longed to be, on the ocean, doing what I do best. Well, other than saving the world, if I may say so myself. Every couple of hours, we switched the group who rowed the boat, and since we only had three shifts, everyone's arms were feeling like lead. Briares, however, was not touched by fatigue, and since we had left the bay a day ago, he had not stopped rowing. This way, less people were rowing each shift, giving us an extra shift. I never had to row, which I was sure wasn't fair, and even though I'd volunteered multiple times, Annabeth had wordlessly pushed me back to the wheel. Apparently, she hadn't gotten over how close we had come to each other. Actually, neither had I.

That, of all the other things that were almost bound to kill us all, was bothering me the most. I knew I had a lot more to worry about, like how we'd get into the Sea of Monsters, how we'd find the Atlantis, how fast could we get there, and multiple other problems that had to be adressed. However, I couldn't keep my mind off of her for more than a few minutes.

By the end of the day, I told the crew to drop anchor, and wait through the night before we cross into the Sea of Monsters. I had figured out that the best way to enter into it was through the Clashing Rocks. We would use the same method as Jason and the Argonauts. Being the one Greek myth that I knew pretty well, I figured that following in hs footsteps wouldn't be the worst thing in the world. I had tried communicating to the seagulls, birds of the sea, and luckily, I had succeeded. Otherwise, I didn't think what we would have to do to get through.

The following day, I reached my mind out towards a low-flying seagull, and convinced it to fly through the rocks. I felt truly horrible about it, because I knew that the poor creature wouldn't have much of a chance of coming out alive.

Into the gap between the rocks the seagull flew. I said a silent prayer for it in Ancient Greek. The Rocks slowly but instantaneously began to close around the little seagull. I knew it only had about two minutes to fly through the great, smashing wall. However, I had other things to worry about, and the second the rocks began to move, I ordered my men to move towards the base of the wall. I knew that the second it began opening, we had to rush into that gap, so as to have double the time we normally would. I didn't think about what might happen if the rocks had been enchanted to automatically move back together even if they were moving apart before something entered the space between them. When the great rocks slammed together, an earth-shaking smash echoed throughout the sea. And then, agonizingly slowly, they began to move apart. I waited eagerly for when there was enough space for our humongous ship.

"GO!" I yelled to Annabeth, who quickly relayed the message to the rowers. Because we needed extra speed, I had assigned two rowers to each oar. I hoped that even that was enough.

The boat lurched forward, and we were on our way through the just-wide-enough crack between the gargantuan rocks. At first, I thought that we were doing good, then realized that the passageway was much longer than I had expected it to be.

"We're not going fast enough!" I yelled to Annabeth.

"They're working their asses off down there!" she yelled back to me, and I knew she was right. I had to do something fast, or we'd get crushed. The rocks had started to close back in around us, and there was too much space between us and freedom. Then a totally absurd thought struck me. I remembered what everyone called my dad. Earthshaker. _I might as well give it a try, _I thought. _The worst thing that could happen is that...oh, wait, we'd die._

I retreated into the depths of my mind, searching for the power that I knew was hidden from me. I just didn't know where to look. I had never moved the earth before, and I didn't think I could. Besides, the power of the rocks might be too much for me to counteract. Still, I dug ever deeper into my head, looking for what I wanted. _C'mon!_ I screamed inside my head. _I need this! Don't give out on me now!_

Then, I felt it. The power coursing through me, endless, unstoppable. I could move mountains, part oceans, crush the world in the palm of my hand. The feeling was intoxicating, I didn't want to let go. As if it were nothing, I reached out my power towards the rocks, and they stopped in there tracks. I didn't know what everyone on deck was seeing, but I wasn't worried about what I looked like. The feeling of strength made me oblivious to everything but my power.

_Don't let go of it, _a sinister voice spoke. _It is beautiful, isn't it, little hero. It takes control of your being, eats away at your soul. Embrace it. _Never_ go back._

_Yes, _I thought. _Never shall I go back to my pitiful, groveling self. Who needs friends, family. All I could ever want is this. _I gazed at everyone on deck, looking at their faces, not treasuring them, but finding weakness in them. They did not deserve my respect, my help. Then, I looked into Annabeth's eyes. Her gray, seemingly omniscient eyes. And the power died away. My strength was ebbing, my life sapping from my body. We had gotten past the rocks, but had barely made it, and as they crashed together, a dozen large stones broke loose and flew over our boat. And one was above Annabeth.

I had to get up, I had to help her. I had to help everyone. I couldn't let them die, let her die, because it would destroy me. I needed strength, just a little strength...

And again, I felt the power in my body. But it was different. It wasn't as crushing and enveloping as before, but it was just as strong. I crushed the rocks above our ship to rubble, but there were still pieces big enough to do a lot of harm. Without thinking, I picked myself off the floor of the ship, where I must have fallen out of exhaustion, and yelled for everyone to find cover. Then, I tackled Annabeth, and about a second later, a rock smashed into the deck where she'd been.

Before she had a chance to kick me off, I jumped to my feet and ran below to check the damage. And it was pretty bad. There was a whole in the hull, and we were taking on water pretty fast. Using what was left of my energy, I pushed the water back through the whole, a tremendous task that made me keel over. Before I passed out on the cold, wet wooden floors, I formed a thin sheet of ice over the hole, temporarily blocking it. Then, I let exhaustion take over my body.

I was swaying in my bed. Or rather, the ground was swaying. The ship. Then, my memory rushed back into me. I opened my eyes, which felt like someone had tied two ton weights to them. The light was dazzling, and as I blinked the splotches out of my vision, I saw Annabeth, Grover, and Chiron leaning over me.

Chiron was the first to notice that I was up. He smiled and looked down at me.

"That was quite something you did, Percy," he said. Annabeth and Grover jumped at the sound of his voice.

"WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING!" Annabeth yelled so loud, my ears throbbed. I could see the tears on her face again, and I felt that horrible feeling in my gut that I had after I pissed her off by the lake. What could I do to make her smile?

"What's up, dude?" Grover asked while he tried to stop Annabeth from punching me. "How are you feeling?"

"Pretty good, G-man," I said to him with a weak smile. Then, I turned to Annabeth. "Good to see you're fine too." That didn't seem to lighten her mood, and she marched out of the room. I groaned.

"Is something wrong, Percy?" asked Chiron.

"No," I said. _Yes, something's really wrong, _I thought. After explaining to him what had happened to me, Chiron was as grave as ever. It seemed that since we'd left camp, his facial expression was freezing into one of utter seriousness.

"Percy," he said. "I don't want you to use any of your powers over the earth _or _water during the rest of this trip. You can command this ship, but no more." I was about to protest, but he held up a hand that ended the conversation. "I will see you on deck," he said, and clopped out of the room with some difficulty.

After changing out of my clothes, I went on deck to check our progress. Apparently, we had laid anchor about 5 nautical miles from the Clashing Rocks. And so, I used the advice my father had given me to set our course. Of course, it was amazing we made any progress, considering we were going against the wind, and I couldn't manipulate the water to make us go any faster. But Chiron was strictly enforcing his rules over me, and constantly reminded me when the going was extremely slow.

But on the fifth day after setting our course, there was a commotion on deck. I was awaken by the sound of swords clashing and the thump of a body hitting the floor. When I had reached the deck, I saw about 30 swords pointed at one person. He had black hair, and olive skin. His eyes were glowing a ghastly white in the night. A cloak touching the floor was wrapped around him, and his black blade was drawn by his side.

"Miss me?" he asked nonchalantly. I walked through the circle of swords and into the center, forcing everyone to sheath their weapons. Then, I started laughing.

Nico di Angelo allowed a faint smile to touch his lips, and his eyes laughed with me.

**Ok, everyone's come together now, and here's where it gets more exciting. Review review review! They make me feel good _and _they tell me more about my story that my amazingly biased mind can't :-D!**


	9. I Feel the Pain of It

**_Ok, this is a chapter where the Percabeth really picks up, so for all of those people who wanted more, here you go. Sorry again for the long time it took to get this up, but school was tough this last month. Enjoy!_**

Chapter 8: I Feel the Pain of It

Nico refused to explain to me how he managed to stow away on my ship, but we exchanged our happenings over our time apart. Apparently, he had gone back to the Underworld, but his time to train. I could tell without him informing me. His muscles were sinewy, and he had gotten much taller still. He handled his sword with ease, and he proudly proclaimed he could summon a small army of skeletons and barely break a sweat. I was impressed, and a bit scared. This kid was getting powerful. I hoped he wouldn't turn into his dad, or I'd have some trouble on my hands. He had overheard me talking to Chiron about our bearings, and he offered to summon a few dozen skeletal warriors to help row. I disagreed, along with the rest of the crew, but gave the excuse that he should conserve his strength.

After two weeks of slowly moving toward our destination, land was spotted. I could feel the power radiating from it. I could see the ancient Greek buildings, their white marble architecture. And I felt that same pure, powerful energy in my veins that I had discovered by the Clashing Rocks. And I felt happier. We could win this thing, I knew it. Kronos would fall today, and we would sweep upon him.

We made land at the end of the day. Chiron, Nico, Annabeth, and I ordered the warriors to set up camp by the top of the hill, where the Great Temple was. We would also have a watch by the shore, to look out for approaching ships. We set up defenses immediately, planting wooden stakes and digging trenches. By the end of the day, I was exhausted. I decided that I would visit the Great Temple, built by the Atlantians to honor my father. I was drawn there, actually, and by the time the moon was high in the sky, I was inside, gazing upon the enormity and grandness of the temple. The pillars were perfectly sculpted, the architecture perfect. Annabeth would love this place.

Thinking about Annabeth made me sad. I hadn't talked to her since the Clashing Rocks. Or rather, she'd been avoiding me. I needed desperately to tell her how I felt. It had been clawing in my stomach for a while. Then, I heard steps from inside the Temple. I walked in, not afraid. After all, what could taint this place?

Annabeth was looking at the stars through the open ceiling. I walked up behind her, and put an arm on her shoulder. Unfortunately, she wasn't that aware of what was going on, and freaked out.

After a lot of swearing and clutching a sensitive zone, I got up to stop Annabeth from apologizing anymore. Before she could turn away to leave, I grabbed her shoulder.

"What the hell is your problem?" I asked harshly. "Why do you keep avoiding me, Annabeth. Tell me the truth."

She looked at me, and my stomach began turning into a mosh pit. But I couldn't lose my nerve. I had to know.

"Percy," she said sadly. "When Hades presented his suspicions to the Gods, your dad and my mom got into an argument. They're real angry at each other now. Or at least, my mom's angry. She gave me an Iris-message. She told me to..." Annabeth started crying then. "She told me that if I wanted her approval, I couldn't talk to you anymore. She told me to...stay away from you..."

Now, you wouldn't know how hard it is to find something to say to this. Part of me was saying "Okay, well, see ya, maybe I'll talk to you again in the Underworld." But, that was the stupid part of me. The rest of me wanted to scream to her mom to shove it up her...No. I had to stay calm.

Finally, I figured out what to say.

"It's up to you, Annabeth," I told her. And I meant it. I mean, what was the point of loving someone when you knew they couldn't love you back? I'll leave you that to ponder for the rest of your life. Because, it seemed to me the answer would only come after that long...or longer.

Then, I waited the couple of minutes it took her to find her voice. Her answer wasn't what I expected though.

She practically fell into my arms, and started crying hysterically. And I was so surprised, I almost let her fall right there on the marble floor. Instead, I fell...but I couldn't have cared less.

"I can't do it," she said through her tears. "I can't." And I was happier than I've ever been. I hugged her a little tighter. But she wouldn't let me. Instead, she lifted her face an inch over mine, and looked me in the eyes. And without thinking, I pulled her face into mine and kissed her.

This was actually my first kiss ever (ya I know, I'm a pretty picky guy, I can't tell you how many girl's hearts I've broken), and for me, it was the best thing in the world. The feeling of her soft lips on mine...oh, Gods...

Then, she pulled away. The tears were back on her face. "I'm sorry," she said to me. And she got up as quickly as I thought possible, and ran out of the building. One of her tears landed right on my finger. Like the most perfect jewel. And as I moved my hand just a little, it fell off, and hit the floor, breaking into a thousand tiny droplets.

**_Ok, there you go, hope you liked it. I read it, and it sounds a little cheesy, but hey, im not perfect. Review, please! However, I have a comment. I love all of you for reading this, and I love you for being my fans ("love" as in not the creepy way). But pleeease dont spam reviews. I know you really want the chapters to get up, but I'm only human, and can't manage everything at the same time. Again, I love you all for wanting to read this so badly, but please, be patient, and dont spam, my email's inbox is full enough. Thank you!_**


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